Mellow Mushroom

There’s plenty of good pizza in Charleston, from the large, crisp Neapolitan-style to the thicker variety. Some places focus on traditional toppings, while others get creative. Mellow Mushroom offers enough variety to make just about anyone happy. The chewy pizza crust and wide-ranging toppings have earned Mellow the Charleston City Paper’s Readers’ Pick as Best Gourmet Pizza 12 years straight. We’re talking andouille and artichokes, tempeh and tofu, along with the more traditional pepperoni and sausage. The same ingredients can be incorporated into dozens of salads, hoagies, and calzones, and they’ve also got gluten-free crust and vegan cheese as options, too. Each of the Lowcountry locations has its own unique look and menu items. In Avondale, an old theater was converted into a huge pizza palace with a psychedelic black-and-white swirl paint job, bright red booths, and very high ceilings. The Mt. P location is built around a giant mushroom with a colorful dining room and adjacent patio, and down on King Street, there’s a rooftop patio with a vibrant mural of fireworks and hot air balloons. The newest of the bunch is the Summerville location with a setting straight out of a fairy tale. We’re a fan of the Mellow Beer Club, which allows diners to work their way through a wide range of respectable craft brews, earning perks throughout the whole process. —Eric Doksa Dish (Winter 2015)